All Gone Wrong
by JinxedJaguar
Summary: Mat visits Rob and Preston in Washington. Who know that a tiny visit could get so messed up? [Poofless, Noochless, NoochM, TBNRfrags, Woofless]
1. Chapter 1

I was going to fly out to Washington. Rob and Preston both lived out there and IRL time was overdue. But that wasn't the only reason I was visiting. I was staying for a week and I figured that I might as well tell Rob about my crush on him. Of course, it could all go wrong, but I would never have to see him again after I fly back.

The plane landed and I was sitting in one of the cafes and the airport. I was waiting for Rob and Preston to come pick me up. They were 25 minutes late. I texted each of them a few times, but neither of them answered. I was in the middle of texting Preston when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I looked behind me and saw the two people who were supposed to be here 30 minutes ago.

"Sorry we were late. We were recording and totally forgot," Rob said. I could tell that the whole sentence wasn't complete truth, but I didn't push it.

"Why didn't you just take a cap? At this rate, you would've already been there and unpacked," Preston asked. I just stared blankly at him.

"… I don't know where you live. I would probably end up taking the driver all around the _state_ and then not be able to pay," I said.

"Oh, yeah… I forgot about that," Preston said. We all laughed and headed to the car.

"TO THE POOFLESS MOBILE!" I shouted, joking. I saw Preston and Rob glance at each other quickly and laugh. Their laughs sounded forced though.

_Poofless... That would ruin everything… But they are too close of friends to be dating, right? Right? _I thought.

The three of us were sat in the living room. We were watching Game of Thrones when Rob got a text. "Hey, Mat? Mitch wants to talk to you, but you haven't answered your phone," Rob said. Then I remembered: my phone was upstairs in the guest bedroom.

"My phone is upstairs! Can you tell him that I'll call him back in a second?" I said. He nodded and I ran upstairs.

I looked at my phone and there were 8 missed calls from Mitch. I quickly called him and he answered on the first ring.

"What took you so long?" an annoyed Mitch answered.

"We were watching GoT and my phone was in the other room!" I said in a defensive tone. I could just see him rolling his eyes.

"Anyway, have you told Rob yet?" Mitch asked. I froze.

"Uh… t-told him what?" I stuttered. I haven't told _anyone_ about my crush.

"Duh, your undying love for him," he answered in a tone that suggested how obvious it was.

"I d-don't l-like Rob," I said.

"It's pretty obvious, Mat," he replied.

"Is it really?" I asked,

"Ha! You admitted it! And no, it's not as clear as I make it seem. I've known you for a while," he said. I calmed down and accepted it.

"No, I didn't say anything about it. I mean, I got here a few hours ago," I said. I heard him scoff.

"But you're the Nooch! You're a straightforward type of person!" he said, sounding a bit whiny.

"Fine! In that case, I'll tell him now!" I said. In a sense, I meant it but didn't mean it at the same time.

"Great! Leave me on the phone though, will you? I'd like to hear this," Mitch said. I just put my phone in my back pocket. Then I ran back downstairs. I really wish I hadn't.

On the couch was Preston and Rob making out. I stood there, frozen. There was a horrible feeling in my chest and stomach: heartbreak. My eyes stung. But at least they didn't notice me. I ran back upstairs as fast and quietly my legs could take me.

"May? No words have been said yet," Mitch hesitantly said through the phone. I slowly walked into the guest bedroom. I closed the door behind me and leaned on it. "Mat? Can you hear me?" Mitch asked. I pulled the phone out and put it on speaker.

"I'm not going to tell him," I said. My voice cracked slightly.

"Why not? You seemed set on the idea. If not now, then when?" Mitch asked. I took a shaky breath.

"Never. I'm never going to tell him. He doesn't love me and he never will," I answered. I tried to hide the sadness in my voice, but I just couldn't.

"What makes you say that? You wouldn't know that!" he said, his voice sympathetic.

"Yes I do. I saw him sucking face with Preston." He didn't say anything for a while.

"Mat, that could mean anything! They might not be dating," he finally said. He tried to sound reassuring, but I could tell that he was doubtful.

"Is there really anything else it could be?" I asked my tone harsh. He didn't answer. "Exactly."

Randomly, I heard a doorbell ring. "I'm sorry, Mat. Jerome's visiting. I gotta go, bye," Mitch said, hanging up. Coincidentally, there was a knock on the bedroom door.

"Hey, Mat? You in here?" I heard a voice ask. I hoped with all my will that it was Rob. I just needed to talk to him; he was still my best friend. But it wasn't Rob.

"Mat? You've been upstairs for quite a while…" Preston said. I didn't open the door.

"Well, I walked downstairs and saw a Poofless make-out session. I'm kinda scared now," I joked half-heartedly. _Scared… Definitely freaked out._

Preston sighed. "It's more than that, isn't it? I can tell. Which one of us?"

"Uh, which one of you what? What do you mean?" I asked innocently.

"You know what I mean. Which one of us do you like? And I mean, like, like like," he said. He didn't sound as happy as he usually did.

"…"

"Answer, Mat!" he insisted, almost shouting. "Is it me?"

I didn't know whether to answer. I always wanted to date Rob, but deep down I knew he didn't deserve me – I didn't deserve him. At first, the "he doesn't deserve me" sounds very conceited, but that's not what I mean. He deserved better than a piece of shit like me. _Preston_ deserved better than heartbreak, a life without his lover.

"It's Rob," I whispered. It was so quiet. I wasn't sure he had heard me or not. But when I heard his answer, I knew he had.


	2. Chapter 2

"Get out," Preston said.

"What?" I asked, taken aback.

"You heard me, get out," he repeated.

"B-but I just got here and-" I started.

"Go! I can't have someone like you getting in the way of us!" Preston shouted.

I was so surprised. I've never seen Preston act like that before. He was always so nice and so happy. I never thought that anyone would think that I was "competition" for pretty much _anything_. Especially when it came to romance.

"What do you mean 'get in the way'?" I asked.

"You know very well what I mean," Preston snapped.

"Not really. How could I possibly get in the way?" I asked again.

Preston gave a frustrated sigh. "I know you well, Mat! You're the outgoing type! Once your mind is set on something, you do it. You're going to steal Rob away from me…" he answered.

That was the second time I was called outgoing that day. What gave people that idea? Are people misinterpreting me? I'm not as great as I may seem.

"Well, good for you then, because my mind isn't set on getting Rob. I would never do anything to hurt you or any of the other guys. I may have in the past, but that was just me being desperate," I said. It was the truth. My friends were the most important thing in my life. To be honest, more important than my family.

Preston hesitated for a second before saying, "I trust you Mat. I'm sorry for snapping. It's just… Rob is the best thing that's ever happened in me. He's my life; he gives me purpose on this world. I can't imagine a life without him."

My heartache doubled. I felt bad for finding out that Rob was dating one of my best friends, but the thought that I somehow could make Preston's world collapse killed me on the inside. I was so selfish to think that my meaningless existence could never affect anyone so dramatically.

"I'm sorry too," I whispered, tears starting to fall from my eyes.

"For what Mat? You have nothing to apologize for anything," Preston said. He walked into my room and silently shut the door. The moment he saw me crying, he sat down next to me and started rubbing my back.

"I was going to confess. That's why I went downstairs so soon. But then I saw you and Rob…" I explained.

"I know that I was super pissed just a little while ago, but I was overreacting. I can't get mad at you for telling the truth, and I'm sure Rob can't either," he assured me.

"There's a one in a billion chance that Rob would like me back, but what if I confessed and he left you? It's such a harsh thing to say, but what would've happened? Maybe 20 minutes ago I would be fine with it, but I know now how important Rob is to you. I'd be the one responsible for taking the most important person in your life away. I wouldn't be able to live with myself," I said.

Preston was taken aback. He sat silent for a while before he started crying too. "I guess… If he was h-happier with you than me I'd be okay with it," Preston said, stumbling over his words.

"Don't lie to me Preston," I replied, almost harshly.

"I don't know, I don't know. I already said it and I can say it again, I can't imagine a world without him," Preston answered truthfully.

In my head, I decided to fly back to Canada. Preston and Rob didn't deserve anyone in the way of their relationship. Preston needed time to think about what I said, maybe even explain it to Rob. The thought of Rob knowing terrified me, but I guess it was bound to happen sometime, right?

"Preston? Mat? You two okay?" Rob called from downstairs.

"Y-yeah. We're perfectly fine," Preston answered in a shaky voice.

"Okay…" Rob said in an unsure voice.

"So. What are you going to do now? Tell Rob, just forget about this, what?" Preston asked.

"I think I'm going to fly back. I can tell I'm just stressing you out," I admitted.

"What?! But you just got here! Literally a few hours ago! Are we really that bad at being hosts?" Preston half-heartedly joked.

I returned the joke with a sad laugh. "No, you guys aren't that bad at being hosts. I think it's more that you're too nice of hosts. Any normal person would've kicked me out already."

"Come on! You're still my best friend! What am I supposed to tell Rob?" Preston asked.

"Just tell him. I don't care. I guess…" I answered. I sounded really confused, but I honestly didn't trust what I just said.

"Please! Rob will be worried," Preston continued.

As if on cue, Rob walked into the bedroom. Luckily I turned away fast enough and go up to start repacking before he saw my tear stained face. Preston wasn't so lucky.

I could hear Preston get up and immediately hug Rob. I felt jealousy poking at my stomach.

"What's wrong, Preston? And what are you doing, Mat?" Rob asked.

"Mat wants to leave already!" Preston said.

I could feel Rob's eyes on my back. "Why? What's happened?" Rob asked.

"Well… I just decided that this would be a… a bad idea," I answered.

"Why would coming over be a bad idea?" Rob continued asking questions.

I almost wanted to tell the truth, but that would be a horrible thing to say as the last time I see them IRL for a while. Luckily Preston saved me.

"Mat realized that he invited Jerome to his house and since Mat's not home he's probably with Mitch. He doesn't want to seem like a complete and total jag," Preston answered for me.

I wondered if Preston actually knew that Jerome was in Canada or if he heard the phone call I had with Mitch, but then I didn't care because Preston just saved my ass.

"Oh. Maybe you can come over after that then?" Rob asked with a mix of sadness, confusion, and hope in his voice.

"Seriously, Rob. All you've said are questions since you came into the room. But okay, I will," I lied. I don't think I'll be back _that_ soon.

"Okay!" Rob said like he was a 6 year old that was promised ice cream in 10 minutes.

"I'm sorry in advance," I whisper.

* * *

I stood in front of the door of my apartment. I lived with Mitch and it was 11 PM at night. There was no doubt that he and Jerome were in the living room because I could hear them talking and laughing. I didn't want to go in and have them ask about why I was only in Washington for less than a day. Maybe they would sense that I didn't want to talk about it? Who knows.

I unlocked the door and slowly went in. I was right, Jerome and Mitch were on the couch talking and when they heard the door open their heads immediately turned to me.

"Hey Mat! What are you doing here so soon?" Jerome greeted. Guess not.

"Oh. Preston and Rob were super stressed out, I didn't want to make it harder on them by staying," I said. Well, at least I could tell Preston was kinda stressed out.

I saw Mitch give me a look that said 'We'll talk about this later.' I gave a small nod and dropped off my stuff in my room. Then I went back in the living room and sat in a chair next to the couch.

"So, how have you two been doing?" I asked.

We continued talking until Jerome got tired and went to bed. It was already 2 AM at that point. I really missed hanging out with them. I never really got the chance since Jerome lived in the States. Times like that really made me miss ASF–especially since Zach wasn't here and his comments would've made everything 20 times funnier.

"Mat? What happened?" Mitch asked.

"Preston found out that I like Rob. And, you know, they're dating so…" I answered.

"Was he mad or anything?" Mitch said.

"At first, but then after we both explained it was fine," I replied.

"Both? What did he have to explain? What did you explain?" Mitch continued asking.

"I told him how would never intend on purposely ruining their relationship. Then he told me why he got so mad at me: because Rob meant everything to him," I explained.

Mitch gave a small smile. "Knowing you, that didn't help at all. It made you feel worse, didn't it?" Mitch asked.

I nodded and looked at my hands. I didn't believe that all that happened in a day. Now I'm already back in Canada. I'm such a coward. I should've explained the truth to Rob. But no, I had to run back to where I'd be lower down the ladder than I was to start with.

"Look. Preston and Rob are some of the nicest people I know, they'll drop it. I'm sure that they won't ignore you or anything. Besides, if they do then that means they never were your friends to start with," Mitch said.

"You always know what to say," I said, hugging Mitch. He hugged back, and there was a voice in my head that told me to never let go. I didn't want to either. I didn't understand it, but I just stayed like that until he pulled away.

"Thanks," we both say at the same time.

"Thanks for what?" I asked him.

"For being there. I know that you needed help more than me, but spending time with you is different than spending time with Jerome," he answered. I felt a smile creep onto my face. Mitch smiled at the sight that he cheered me up.

Suddenly his lips were on my own. He was kissing me. BajanCanadian, Mitchell Hughes, was kissing me. The moment his lips made contact with mine, I felt heat raise to my face and my heart beat race faster. The moment felt perfect. At least until I realized that I wasn't kissing back.

He stopped kissing me and was about to stand up in a split second. "I-I'm so sorry, Mat. I d-didn't-" Mitch started.

I cut him off by kissing him. I know, it's super-duper cheesy. It's pretty much what happens in every fanfiction, but something told me that that would be the right thing to do. He kissed back right away.

"I've had a crush on you for a really long time… It broke my heart when I figured out that you like Rob. But I didn't want to be selfish… I love you, Matthew," Mitch said once we were both facing each other and not kissing.

"That was just a crush. Just like a crush in junior or high school. I got over it. Now I know what it feels like to love and be loved," I said. It may seem so sudden, but something just clicked when Mitch kissed me. When I thought about it, the feeling I got when Rob was with me was nothing compared to how I felt when Mitch was with me, especially now. "I love you too, Mitchell."


	3. Chapter 3

I woke up on the couch on top of Mitch's chest. It was really comfortable; it felt like nothing in the world could make me move from this position. Maybe anything but Jerome.

"Hey guys," Jerome said. You could hear the smirk in his voice.

"Go away," I groaned. I could tell that Mitch hadn't woken up, but he was moving around.

"You can't make me do anything. Especially when I have some pictures that you don't want to be sent around," Jerome taunted.

My eyes snapped open and I saw Jerome had his phone in his hand. Mitch still hadn't woken up somehow.

"What are these pictures of?" I asked cautiously, starting to get up to snatch Jerome's phone.

"Oh, just a few pictures of you and Mitch cuddling. Nothing much," he answered.

"And who do you intend on sending these pictures to?" I continued, moving Mitch's arm from my waist.

"I'm not entirely sure yet, but definitely all our closest friends, maybe all my Skype contacts, I don't know," Jerome said innocently.

Suddenly I tried to be sneaky and steal his phone to delete the photos, but Jerome was fast and moved his hand. He was smart and ran for it. I started chasing after him and we started running around my small apartment screaming random things.

"GIVE ME THAT PHONE!"

"BUT MAAAAAAAATCH!"

"WHAT EVEN?!"

"CAN'T CATCH ME!"

"I CAN IF I WANT!"

"JAG!"

"LOOK WHO'S TALKING!"

Jerome somehow managed to open the door without me catching up to him and we started running up and down the hall. I felt bad for our neighbors, it was 8 on a weekend. Then we both kind of gave up and collapsed in front of my apartment door.

"I don't think that was worth it…" I said, out of breath.

"Probably not…" Jerome agreed.

I heard the door open behind us and we both turned around to see a tired Mitch standing confused. He looked so adorable that I literally melted on the inside. Ew that sounds gross. Can you imagine all your organs- I'll stop now…

"What's going on?" he asked. He was definitely still sleepy.

"Oh nothing, just you know…" Jerome said handing Mitch his phone. Mitch looked at the phone and I saw his face turn red.

"W-what's this?" he stuttered.

"You and Mat cuddling," Jerome said in a 'duh' voice. Mitch glanced at me and I shrugged.

"Um… Why did you take this picture?" Mitch said.

"Just wanted to send it to a few people," Jerome answered nonchalantly. Mitch's red face suddenly turned ghostly white.

"What? Who?" he freaked out. Jerome was about to answer Mitch, but was cut off by his own phone ringing. "It's Rob, can I answer?"

"Sure."

My stomach dropped. Rob? He's most likely with Preston. I still don't want to talk about it. Especially in front of clueless Jerome. On the inside I was freaking out, on the outside I looked completely emotionless.

"Hello?" Mitch asked, putting the call on speaker.

"Mitch? Is that you? Why do you have Jerome's phone?" Rob said.

"He's staying up here in Montreal for a while," Mitch answered. Jerome went into the house and Mitch and I followed.

"Yeah, Mat told me. That's the excuse he gave us to go home," Rob said slowly.

"Excuse? What do you mean by that?" Jerome asked. "It's on speaker by the way."

"Um, Mat said that he forgot he invited you over and didn't want to leave you with Mitch when he was the one who invited you," Rob answered.

"What? Mitch-" Jerome started. Mitch covered Jerome's mouth before he could say anything.

"Sorry again Rob. I'm not that good at planning things out," I cut in. So Preston hadn't told Rob yet. And to be honest, I was the best at planning out of all my friends. They rely on me to set up parties and stuff, so Rob had no reason to believe me but he did.

"It's fine. It's not like you said I can't be your friend anymore or something," Rob joked. "I gotta go though. I just wanted to check on you guys." And he hung up.

"What was that about?!" Jerome shouted.

"Why I covered your mouth? Um…" Mitch said. He looked at me.

"I, uh, need to talk to Preston," I said out of nowhere and ran to my room.

I didn't know where that came from, but I did. I needed to tell him about Mitch, and what happened, and Rob. How has this all happened in 2 days?

* * *

**Hi. I don't usually do A/N's. Just wanted to say sorry for the short chapter, I just wanted to start by directing where this story was going. Thanks!**


	4. Chapter 4

"Preston?" I asked when he answered the Skype call. Both of us had our facecams on.

"Hey Mat, what's up?" he greeted.

"Um, I just wanted to talk," I said.

"What happened?" he asked worriedly.

"Um, a lot. Where do I start? So, you didn't know this, but Jerome actually _is _here. But Mitch invited him over, not me," I started.

"#Merome," Preston said with a slightly smirk on his face. I felt a twinge of sadness poke at my heart. I didn't doubt his words when he said he loved me, but we still hadn't started officially dating or anything. If I found out Jerome likes Mitch that way I don't know what I'd do. He's pretty good at putting up facades and I can't tell whether that's a good or bad thing.

But Jerome holds the record of longest relationship between all of us. And it was with a girl. They broke up recently and Jerome has admitted to being bisexual, but I doubted that Jerome liked Mitch. It just didn't seem like Jerome.

"Um… There's something I have to tell you that's kinda similar to that," I said.

"Is Merome real?" he asked, nearly jumping in my seat. That made me a bit sadder. I didn't even know the ship name for me and Mitch.

"No…" I muttered, looking down at the keyboard. I glanced back up and Preston looked a bit disappointed. "Actually, I kinda like Mitch…"

"What?" Preston said, his eyes filled with a child's curiosity.

"Yeah. I know it's so fast, just yesterday I was…" I trailed off, trying to think of a way to describe my crush on Rob.

"Dying," Preston suggested. I smiled a little.

"Dying for Rob just yesterday, but as I was talking to Mitch I realized how perfect Mitch really is. Rob is great, but I don't think of him the same anymore. No one really compares to Mitch now," I continued. As I said it, I realized how much Mitch really did mean to me. My friends are the most important people in my life in all honesty, but I won't lie and say that I haven't been taking them for granted.

"There's something you're not telling me, I can feel my friendship senses tingling," Preston said, a huge smile growing on his face too.

"Well, he may have kissed me and said that he's had a crush on me for as long as he can remember. And I may have kissed him too," I admitted.

"Oh my gosh! Match is now my new OTP!" Preston squealed, even more excited when I was talking about Merome. But there was that word again. Match. Jerome said it too.

"Wait, what's Match?" I asked.

"It's your ship," Preston answered. That made sense. Now I do know our ship. "But what's going on with you two now?"

"I'm not entirely sure…" I muttered.

"What does that mean?!" he shouted.

"Be quiet before Rob comes or something," I said, worried.

"He'll just think I'm recording or something," Preston said a bit more quietly.

"I don't know. I just don't know… But there's something else. Rob called not so long ago. You haven't told him?" I asked.

"Well, I didn't know whether you actually wanted me to tell him. You said I could, but I didn't know if you meant it," he answered.

"I did. I'm too scared to tell him myself. But if you do tell him, say I'm over him. Please," I said. Preston was about to say something else, but Mitch walked into the room and Preston stayed quiet.

"Hey, Mat? Sorry for not knocking but I wanted to tell you that we made breakfast," Mitch said. He stayed quiet for a few seconds and continued, "But that's not all I wanted to say. I… I- uh, would you like to go on a date- er, I mean maybe we could go out sometime?"

He didn't notice that I had Skype open. He didn't notice that Preston muted his mic and was jumping around his room. He didn't notice the giant smile or the dark blush on my face. But I noticed how embarrassed he was.

"I would love to," I said, trying not to stumble over my words.

"Really?" he nearly gasped.

"Yeah. Oh, and say hi to Preston while you're here," I told him. I just turned into a real jag. Wow, I'm mean. It was funny seeing his reaction to that. I didn't know that it was humanly possible to turn that shade of red.

"I can't handle it!" Preston yelled, unmuting his mic.

"D-did he see all of th-that?" Mitch said, hiding his face in his hands.

"Yeah, I did. And I must say, you two make a good couple," Preston said, calming down.

"I told Preston about last night, Mitch," I tried to calm Mitch down.

"Oh, um… Did you tell him about the picture or anything?" Mitch asked. Then, as if on cue, all three of our phones went off.

"What's this?" Preston said, opening up the text. "It's a group chat started by Jerome."

I immediately knew what Jerome sent. I slumped in my seat and Mitch buried his face further into his hands.

"Oh god…" we both muttered.

"You guys are giving me too much to handle at once!" Preston shouted. He is probably a bigger fan of us than our actual fans.

My embarrassment was replaced with anger as I stomped out of the room into the kitchen. I will kill Jerome if it's the last thing I do.


	5. Chapter 5

"What the actual fuck!" I shouted as I stormed into the kitchen.

"What's wrong," Jerome asked innocently, trying to hide a smirk and failing.

"Shut up you dick, you know what's wrong," I snapped.

"Yeah, I know what's wrong because I'm the one who did it. But what are you going to do about it?" Jerome taunted.

At times like this, I wished that Jerome would act this way during recordings. I completely understood why he and Mitch turned off the swearing and innuendos, but it just felt like it I was talking to someone completely different. Our obscenities and offensiveness was what made us stand out, now there was really no difference between us and other YouTubers. To be honest, I didn't care because I loved recording either way.

"I was thinking more along the lines of what are _you _going to do?" I said.

"What does that even mean?" Jerome said, more confused than anything. I snatched Jerome's phone off the table and went into the group chat he sent. For the record, Jerome's password was so stupid; it was literally 0000. I guess his logic is that it's so stupid no one would think of it. What does that tell Jerome though?

Jerome snatched back his phone and we started fighting over it. I tackled him to the ground trying to grab the phone, but he wouldn't go down without a fight. A big fight. We argue a lot. I don't think it's healthy, but it's funny.

"You two stop fighting," a voice suddenly commanded. The two of us immediately snapped our heads up to see Mitch. "Give me the phone Jerome," he said. Jerome handed Mitch his phone without hesitation. Mitch was the only person Jerome would take the answer 'no' from. I felt my heart get poked again.

I looked over Mitch's shoulder to see what he was doing. He deleted the text. Not everyone had read, luckily, because of recording, messed up sleeping schedules, different time zones, and downright laziness.

Let's just hope that the few people that did see it don't start talking about it.

"Aw, you guys are no fun," Jerome pouted, crossing his arms. I saw his face flash an envious glance at me but then quickly turn into annoyance. _Was he jealous of me? Why would he be jealous of me? Oh… _That made me feel like I was stabbed.

I folded up a pancake so that I could eat it in one bite and locked myself in my room. I stuffed the pancake into my mouth and just stared at the red walls.

I was sure that Jerome liked Mitch; there was nothing that convinced me he wasn't. Of course, that means that I'm making assumptions based off a few things I know and there very well might be stuff behind what I saw.

I didn't even understand why I was making such a big deal over this. Jerome can like whoever he wants to like and I can't stop him. Mitch and I weren't even dating or anything, so I had no right to worry about Merome.

That last part stabbed at the rest of my thoughts. Mitch and I were just friends. He was just a close and amazing friend who had a crush on me, and I was just a heartbroken and selfish loser who convinced himself that he had a crush on his friend. I probably didn't actually even like Mitch back; I was just feeling lonely and guilty. Jerome deserves Mitch way more than him. I probably still have a crush on Rob.

My eyes stung, but I tried to hold back the tears. _None of this is worth crying about_, I repeated over and over again. I couldn't bring myself to believe it. Too much was happening at once; getting a crush on Rob, being unknowingly rejected because of Poofless, heartbreak, getting a crush on Mitch, becoming paranoid about Merome, and more heartbreak. It was too much for me.

The tears finally spilled. I wouldn't let myself sob; I couldn't let either of them get worried about me. But my crying still got worse and worse. My breathing was uneven and I was gasping for breath. Every now and then a whimper would escape my lips. Each time I whimpered I pulled my legs closer to my chest.

All I wanted was for Mitch to sit next to me and hug me as I tried to call myself down. I wanted him to rub circles into my back and tell me that everything was going to be okay when I knew I wouldn't. I wanted to feel like someone actually cared about me even thought I knew that I was shutting everyone out.

I wanted to understand my feelings and what was going on. I wanted to know if Jerome actually did like Mitch and if Rob cared about me liking him at one point. I wanted to know if I completely got over Rob already; I wanted to know if Mitch loved me the way I've made myself think I loved him. I wanted to know if I loved Mitch or if I was just being selfish.

I hated love. It's officially the worst emotion you can ever feel. It only brought me confusion and pain. It only tortured me and wrung my reasons to live out. But it was the only thing that made me happy.


	6. Chapter 6

It's been 5 days since Jerome sent the picture of me and Mitch sleeping to our friends. They were all talking about it to each other, so at that point all of our friends knew. I didn't care, though. It's not like they would ever find us cuddling again (to my disappointment).

It seemed like Mitch completely forgot that he asked me out on a date. I wasn't going to remind him, seeing as I took it that he didn't care about it. It didn't matter much to me, so I didn't make a big deal. Who am I kidding? I care. A lot. If it makes me feel like I'm slowly dying and it's the only thing on my mind does that mean I care? Probably.

It really did hurt. Every single romance trouble I've had in the past _added together_ didn't compare to this. I don't even understand it. Just a few days ago I was wondering whether or not if I actually liked Mitch because I liked him, and now he's all I can think about.

I've locked myself in my room, refusing to leave my room with the exception of getting food once or twice a day. Mitch and Jerome haven't gotten suspicious or anything because that's basically a day in the life for us. They'd be recording and I'd be playing Dota or something. But I wasn't doing either now.

I tried to record to get my mind off of things, but Mitch only got in the way. I'd never be able to focus during anything, so I spent the majority of my time trying to think of ways to get him off my mind. Obviously, that's just thinking about him more. So basically I'm stuck in a never ending loop of thoughts about Mitchell Hughes. It's kinda like a fangirl obsession to a whole new and extreme level to be completely honest.

I was just sitting in my room screaming at myself in my head to try and make the heartache go away, like always, when I heard talking in front of my door. Through the door, I overheard Mitch and Jerome talking. Yeah, whatever, it's rude to eavesdrop. It was important for me to know though. They were talking about Jerome moving in.

"Come on Jerome! You're telling Mat now or else you won't get to move in at all," Mitch said, almost in a threatening tone.

"But Mat probably doesn't want me to be living in the same house as you two! I'd be… intruding the system or something!" Jerome argued.

"He'll understand, stop stressing out. Mat's our friend too," Mitch assured Jerome.

I felt jealous of Jerome, knowing that Mitch's full attention was now on making Jerome feel better. It's so selfish and so immature, but I couldn't bring myself to just accept that Mitch was never mine. _I have no right_ _to_, echoed through my head. And it's been 5 days. I'm just too much of a drama queen. Notice the extremely bitter tone.

"I know that. I know that Mat is more thoughtful than most of us, but… I don't know. I guess I don't want to get in between you two," Jerome said. The last part was almost inaudible.

"Get in between what? You moving in is no different than when he moved in," Mitch said.

That stung. He said he liked me. And I told him I loved him back. But I guess it was probably the same deal as when I still liked Rob. I'm over Rob, and he's over me. Great timing.

"You really think so? But what about you two cuddling? That didn't mean anything to you?" Jerome asked, speaking my thoughts. I didn't quite want the answer though. I knew I'd get an answer I didn't want.

"The thought meant a lot until it actually happened. I'll admit that I was really glad he like me back, but now I can't bring myself to think of him that way anymore. I asked if he wanted to go on a date before I was thinking, and he hasn't said anything so my only assumptions is that he doesn't care. It doesn't even matter though, I've kinda moved on," Mitch answered.

My breathing stopped. I knew that his answer would be like that, but I wasn't ready for it. He moved on the moment I'd moved onto him. I tried to hold back my tears again. They'd be able to hear my sniffling through the door. I needed to stop crying about this. None of it mattered. I didn't need romance to be happy. I didn't need Mitch in my life; I didn't need any of this. But first I needed to stop lying to myself.

"How do you know that Mat doesn't care from him simply not talking about it? How do you know it's not just both of you being afraid to say anything? Or you feeling guilty because you'd make him go through two heartbreaks in a single week?" Jerome said.

I shoved my face into my pillow to try to muffle my crying. _Mitch shouldn't be stressing about possibly putting me through two heartbreaks because he's already put me through the equivalent of a thousand_, I thought bitterly.

"Are you trying to pry it out of me? I told you I've moved on and now you want me to tell you who I've moved onto," Mitch scoffed, mock offended.

"What? That's not what I was doing at all! I actually want to know why you went from crushing on Mat for years to just thinking of him as a friend the moment he starts liking you back," Jerome defended.

"I don't think he actually likes me back. He was just lonely when he found out he had no chance with his crush. I can't blame him, but I can't say that it didn't hurt when I realized this," Mitch said.

"You know what? Why don't we just do what we came here for," Jerome mumbled.

I freaked out. There was nothing I could do to stop them from coming in. If I told them not to come in, then they'd know I was listening. I couldn't pretend to be sleeping because I was in normal clothes and unless I acted like I was having a nightmare it wouldn't be convincing. But if I had a "nightmare" they'd wake me up. No matter what I'd do, they'd know I was crying. And they didn't knock.

"Hey Mat?" Jerome called, opening the door. I kept my face stuffed into my pillow.

"Oh my gosh, Mat. Are you okay?" Mitch asked. I could feel him sit next to me on the bed. I still didn't answer.

"Mat, just answer us please," Jerome said.

"What?" I asked angrily, my voice muffled by my pillow.

"What's wrong?" Mitch asked softly. I didn't want to answer. I couldn't come up with one.

"Nothing, I'm just on my man-period," I replied sarcastically. I heard both of them try not to laugh. I didn't know how I didn't laugh or where that came from, but I'd have to remember that one.

"Oh, I guess now isn't the time to ask you if I could move in then, is it?" Jerome said hesitantly.

"What does that mean?" I asked.

"Well, I thought that your answer would be affected by your mood, and then-" Jerome started, talking at 1000 miles per hour.

"Why would I ever say no? You're one of my best friends, it would be awesome to live with another friend," I said, trying to sound happy when there were still tears dripping down my face. They still couldn't see how much I was crying.

"You really think so?" he said.

"Yeah." _I'm pretty sure Mitch likes you and that you like him, go for it. You deserve him way more than I do_, I added in my head. I let my people-pleaser side show on top of everything I was thinking. It didn't matter that I wasn't getting what I want, it matters that other people are getting what they want.

I still couldn't get over how that was the second time I had to tell myself that in less than a week.


	7. Chapter 7

Jerome flew back to New Jersey to get packed so he could move in. It was bitter-sweet. I wanted time alone with Mitch and I didn't care how selfish that was, but I really didn't at the same time. Jerome was distracting Mitch from me and I was somewhat grateful for that. Mitch would surely ask why I've been ignoring them. There's no answer I can say to that that's remotely believable besides the truth. Not that I can think of anyway, and I'm an idiot.

My self-esteem has really lowered since I heard Jerome and Mitch's conversation. I really wanted to know why Mitch didn't like me anymore (again, very self-centered). I wanted to know why I was good until I shared his feelings. I wanted to know why no one could like me.

So I did the only thing I could do: vent out to Preston.

I called Preston's phone instead of his Skype. I didn't exactly seem my own logic behind that, but I guess he would be more likely to answer if I was calling over the legitimate phone. I'm desperate. Help me.

"Hello?" a voice asked through the phone. It wasn't Preston's.

"Hi? Wait, Rob? Why are you answering Preston's phone?" I asked.

"He's recording right now and he left his phone with me. What's up, Mat?" he answered.

"Um… Nothing. I just wanted to talk to Preston. I'll just call back…" I muttered, hesitantly pulling the phone away from my face.

"Wait! Mat!" I heard him shout.

"Yeah, what?"

"Uh, Preston told me that you… Liked me," he said hesitantly. I cringed a bit on the inside, wondering how this conversation would end up.

"Uh… Yeah," I said cautiously.

"So you're not denying it?" he asked.

"Why would Preston lie to you? You mean everything to him," I said. Right after I said that I realized how bitter I sounded. That probably didn't help my idea that I'm over him. It's just the fact that life has been so sucky recently.

"I… I don't know. I guess I just wanted to hear it from you… Um, he also said you're over me. I hope you're okay because he also told me that you… uh, you saw us kissing. He told me that that's why you left so soon," he stuttered. His words were tumbling over each other. He didn't want to talk about this either.

"I'm over you," I said confidently. I didn't feel so confident though. I was still hurting a lot on the inside. _Maybe I'd be hurting less if I hadn't fallen for Mitch…_ I added in my head.

"I'm not going to argue or anything, okay?" he declared. I gave a small noise of agreement. "But, I hope you don't mind me asking, but what's wrong? You seem off–you don't seem okay," he asked softly.

"I don't think I am," I mumbled under my breath.

"What's wrong?" He was being so nice.

"I… I don't know. I don't understand what's wrong." Nothing should be wrong. I shouldn't be in love with Mitch; I shouldn't be heartbroken over him. I shouldn't still be heartbroken about Rob either. Maybe I shouldn't even be over Rob to start with.

"What don't you understand about it?"

"You got that picture from Jerome, right?" I was still mad at Jerome for sending that. It only made me feel worse about myself.

"Oh. Yeah, what about it?" He was still talking in a quiet and calm voice.

"Mitch and I… We…" I didn't know how to finish that sentence. Why was I overreacting so much? We're still friends, right? We're not in a relationship or anything. He's just my friend and he's all I can ask for. Friends. That's what we were. _Friends_. That word made tears prick at my eyes. I wouldn't let them fall. I couldn't. Maybe I just meant it in 90s show way. Maybe I meant that we're like Rachel and Ross. A lot like them.

"Yeah?" he asked, urging me to finish my sentence. He knew I had something to say that wasn't coming out in words and he wanted to know. He didn't understand, so wanted me to explain.

"We… He told me he liked me. Emphasis on the 'ed,'" I said, my tone becoming bitter again.

"Oh… I'm sorry," Rob said, at a loss of words.

"Why are you saying sorry? It's not your fault." I was trying to pretend that I could take back those words I said before and act like I wasn't mad about it.

"I don't know… I just… feel like it's my fault. I know that part of it is, for sure, but I just feel like I should be taking the blame…"

Honestly, it was mostly his fault. If I hadn't thought he was so perfect, I wouldn't have fallen in love with him. If I hadn't fallen in love with him, I would've never been hurt by him and Preston making out. I wouldn't have gone home and I wouldn't have kissed Mitch. I wouldn't have fallen in love with Mitch.

Of course, I didn't want to say that. It's both our faults. Because of him, I went crazy. I technically chose to, in a sense. And Rob didn't deserve any of that guilt, or the stress to make things better.

"It's okay, don't worry about it…" I muttered.

"Have you talked to him about it?" he asked.

"No…"

"Why not? It's probably the only thing that'll help you."

"Don't you understand how _awkward_ that would be? I know who he likes now, and I know that that person isn't me. I know that he purposely is ignoring me so I don't bring up the fact that we should've gone on a date last week, even though I wouldn't. I know, _I can tell_, that he wishes that he asked Jerome out instead of me." The tears pricking at my eyes finally spilled.

I was going to tell Preston this. Not Rob. But I told Rob anyway. Only then did I realize how similar, how perfect, they were for each other. When I was around either of them, I just felt at home, I felt comfortable. I knew I could tell either of them anything and they'd be supportive, understanding, helpful – they'd help me with whatever I needed help with.

"I know Mat, I know… But I know that you'll feel better after just telling him. Tell him that you don't care even though you really do. I know you well, Mat. I know you wouldn't want to make him feel guilty – you wouldn't want to make anyone feel bad in any way, shape or form. Just let him know that it's okay on your end and let time heal your scars," Rob said. A small smile formed on my lips and I half-hearted laugh escaped my lips.

"That was more poetic then it needed to be…" I said.

"But it's true. Go and tell him Mat. And, again, I'm sorry."

"Okay, thank you so much!"

"Don't worry about it, bye."

"Bye." I sighed and hung up the phone.

Was I really going to do it? Did I really have the guts to talk to Mitch about us on my own? I guess I couldn't get any more confident than I already was.

I walked out of my room and stopped in front of Mitch's door. My hand froze in front of it, scared to knock. But without even realizing, my hand moved on its own.

"Uh, Mitch?"


	8. Chapter 8

_Hey guys, I am so so so so sorry for the long wait. I feel like shit for not updating, and it's all because of stupid school and friends. I've been pretty depressed lately, but I won't go into detail because I'm sure you just want t to read the story. If for some reason you want to know the full reason, just DM me._

* * *

The door slowly swung open, revealing Mitch. He was still in his pajamas and he looked like he just woke up. What was he doing still asleep? It was 2 PM!

"Uh, yeah? What's up, Mat?" he answered. His voice was deep and laced with drowsiness. My stomach clenched with nervousness and, to be honest, a small fangirl overload. I found Mitch very adorable in the state he was in, tired and not ready for the day. It took all my will to not say anything about it or 'aw.'

"Erm… Well I, uh, heard you and Jerome talking a few days ago. You know, right before you guys told me that you wanted Jerome to move in?" I said slowly.

"Yeah, so?" Mitch said, gesturing me to continue. "Oh," he breathed out a second later.

"Yeah, and I just wanted you to know-" I tried to start. He urgently cut me off.

"Look, I'm sorry. I'm so sorry that I don't like you that way anymore, and the way you found out was so cruel – I mean, that shouldn't happen to anyone-" he rambled. It was my turn to cut him off.

"Hey, hey, hey, calm down. I'm fine. You're my best friend, I know how you work. I know that you avoided me because you thought that I would yell at you or something because of the date that we ended up not having. I'm not mad. I understand the feeling of moving onto people without being ready…" _Yeah, I understand it a bit too well_, I added in my head.

"Really? You're okay with it?" He let out a deep breath. I nodded and plastered a fake smile onto my lips. My stomach clenched again, but with sadness.

"Yeah… And I'm sure Jerome likes you back…" I said quietly. I turned away to walk back to my room before I would start crying again. Mitch put a hand on my shoulder and stopped me. My skin tingled under his touch and I felt butterflies in my stomach. Rob had never made me feel this way, neither had any of the people from my past relationships.

"Wait, how do you know about that?" he insisted. _Oh, so he's not denying it. No, you are not going to cry, this is stupid. This is a stupid guy, romance isn't my whole life._ I sure had made it a big part of my life though.

"I already told you, I know you well Mitch," I said monotone.

"How well do you know me if you never knew that I had a crush on you, Mat?" Mitch snapped. Where did all that anger come from? A small part of me cringed.

"I-I thought th-that you were just like that n-normally," I muttered. I was a bit scared by his sudden mood swing.

"I guess you have a point… I'm sorry. For everything," he apologized. His hand dropped from my shoulder and he went back into his room. The door hesitantly closed behind him.

"You have nothing to be sorry for. It's not your fault that I keep falling in love with people who I don't deserve a single bit and that I can't get over it when the same thing happens every time …" I whispered. I wasn't even talking to anyone at that point. It was just a door. I knew that there was no chance that he would've heard it. I still told him in a sense. That was good enough for me. I gave a small, dejected sigh and walked towards my room.

**Mitch's POV ((Weren't expecting that, were you?))**

I bet he thought that I wasn't able to hear him. I definitely did. He meant it when he told me that he loved me? He wasn't just desperate for affection after Rob rejected him?

Well, guess what, he's too late. Maybe if he had noticed sooner, this would've worked out. Maybe if he realized how long that I had waited for his lips to meet mine like they had that night that seemed like it was forever ago, I wouldn't have gotten over him the time I did.

It's harsh, I know, but it's the cold, hard truth. I've never been good in relationships anyway. I made a promise to myself that I wouldn't get close to anyone romantically ever since _her_. I know that I've been pretty lousy at keeping that promise, but I've tried. It's not like I took any action upon any of my hardcore crushes, the person I have a crush on seems to always do that for me. Still, though, I never do anything to stop it when my crushes make moves on me. Maybe Mat was just an exception.

_A drive_, I thought,_ a drive will get my mind off of things. I'll just push off recording for a bit longer._ Drives always cleared my mind. Even though they were pointless drives, ones where I just drove around the area, something about it made me feel better somehow. I silently went to the garage started the car. Mat would probably be playing Dota for the next few hours, he won't be worried or anything.

When I started consciously thinking about where I was going, I found myself on the highway. I wouldn't leave the neighborhood when I went on pointless drives, so where was I taking myself? I just went where some small part of my consciousness lead me.

The road finally looked familiar. We were heading to our special spot. The spot _she_ would always beg me to go to. The spot where we first kissed. The spot where _she_ did _it_.

Suddenly a memory hit me like a boulder. My whole body froze as I was reminded of the worst day of my life.

_Ring, ring, ring! My phone went off as I was trying to do homework in my room. I gave a frustrated sigh and almost decided to just leave the phone ringing, but answered it anyway._

_"Hello?" I asked. I didn't think about checking the caller ID. There was some sniffing on the end._

_"M-Mitch? I-is that y-you?" It was my girlfriend Kaitlin. We had been dating for a whole year, and it was a pretty serious relationship. It wasn't just another lousy, pointless, stereotypical high school relationship. She meant the world to me, she was my everything and I knew she felt the same._

_"Yeah, it's me. What's wrong, baby? Why are you crying?" _

_"I-I'm so, so, so sorry! I-I can't anymore, I j-just can't!" she sobbed._

_"Sorry for what? What can't you do anymore?" I was starting to panic. This was not like her normal self. She wasn't an overdramatic person either. This was serious, and I was scared._

_"I-I'm s-so sorry… I-I've just m-made your life w-worse haven't I?" Oh no. She was doing it again. Sometimes she would randomly start rants about how worthless she was and how she didn't deserve anything that she had. I never called her dramatic or told her to walk it off; I always helped her through it. Something about her tone this time, though, scared me. I couldn't pick out what, but something was different this time._

_"No, no, no! Of course not! I love you, you're my everything. Don't think otherwise."_

_"D-don't lie to m-me!"_

_"I'm not lying; I would never do that to you!" She couldn't find words to say. I heard her take a deep, shaky breath and get to the reason she called._

_"I-I'm sorry. It's t-too late now. I-I'm so sorry." I could hear he begin to hysterically sob._

_"Calm down, please. It's never too late. I'll help. Where are you?" _

_"Y-you can't h-help, no one c-can."_

_"I'll try at least, please just tell me." I was getting even more nervous and panicked. _

_"I-I'm doing it, a-and th-that's it." The line went dead._

_What was she doing? I was too confused and stressed out to think straight. Whatever it is, it can't be good. I needed to find her, wherever she was. The first place that came to mind was our 'special spot.' It was a random area we found. It was a small cliff-like drop with an empty field just as small with a single tree. It was right to the side of a road that no one ever went on._

_I ran to my car as fast as humanly possible. I drove there as fast as I could, not even caring that I was speeding. No one was up at this time, so it wasn't like I was going to crash into anything._

_What I saw when I got there was something I could never un-see. Right there, on our 'special spot' was a body, obviously dead, hanging from the tree by a rope. As I cautiously took tiny steps toward the body, I realized that it was her. It was Kaitlin. Kaitlin was hanging from a noose. As I got even close, I saw the blood flowing onto the ground from her arms. _

_My throat tightened and my eyes stung. She wasn't dead. I wasn't too late. It's fine. She can still be saved. I ran over to her and took her down from the tree. She wasn't warm. She wasn't cold, either. That part just stabbed at me with an unbearable pain, but not enough to let me succumb to it. I was late, but if I had come just a little sooner, maybe I could've saved her. _

_Tears were sliding down my face faster than the blood that was still rolling down her arms. The water dripped onto her and mixed in with the blood, creating a river of sadness that was being soaked up by the earth. _

_Funny, isn't it? There are different ways to show depression, and two of the most common ones were right here. Crying and suicide. Tears and blood. I couldn't stand this anymore. My whole life just caved in on itself in a matter of minutes._

_I suddenly stood up, as fast as I could while gently laying Kaitlin's body down. I started feeling the ground nearby the tree. She probably cut herself here. That means the blade is here too. Soon, but too long for my liking, I found it. I adjusted myself so the blade was pressed against my left wrist._

_"I don't think you should do that," an unfamiliar voice said. I dropped my arms to my sides and looked up. _

_There was a boy who looked to be my age who was standing above me, looking down at me in the ground. He had a mop of curly black hair and a shade of brown eyes that I found interesting for some reason._ _He had a small pair of glasses on and casual clothing; just some sweatpants and a loose t-shirt._

_"How'd you get here?" I asked, my tone sounding more bitter and hateful than I expected. _

_"I was driving around and I saw your car pulled over," he answered simply. "And I heard sobbing and I was concerned…" he added quietly._

_"Thanks for being concerned, but would you go away now?" I snapped at him. He took a step away from me. _

_"Sorry, I can't."_

_"And why is that?"_

_"I called the police…" _

_"You what?!"_

_"I tried to talk to you just a little while ago, but it didn't seem like you heard me. Then I saw _that_…" He pointed at Kaitlin._

_"She is not a 'that' she's a person!" I shouted. I broke into tears again and crumpled into an even more weirdly shaped lump on the ground. The stranger kneeled down beside me and tried to comfort me._

_"My name is Mat, by the way." _

Just then I snapped out of my flashback. I suddenly became aware of the fact that I was drifting into the wrong lane. I tried to take action too late and the last thing I remembered seeing was a car speeding its way towards mine.


	9. Chapter 9

p class="MsoNormal"strong(Mat's POV)/strong/p  
p class="MsoNormal"I was bored and decided to roll around on the floor. Why? I have no clue. I threw a ton of blankets onto the ground and just rolled back and forth like a dog. I'm weird, no wonder I keep getting rejected. Even though I was doing something as funny and goofy as rolling around, my thoughts were heading the complete opposite./p  
p class="MsoNormal"I don't think I've ever wanted something so much. With Rob, he was like a fish that looked promising, but I knew I would never be able to catch. I only recently realized that this whole time Mitch was better than Rob, and I was able to catch hold of him, only for him to wriggle his way out. Did I just compare my love life to fishing? Well, I guess it was. Boring, time consuming, repetitive…/p  
p class="MsoNormal"Anyway, Mitch is different. How had I not noticed before? He was perfect, I mean, there's a reason why every fangirl wants to be with him. I wanted nothing more than him to tell me that he loves me one more time, for him to gently press his lips against mine and mutter a quiet sorry and for me to apologize too. I just wanted someone to love me, someone who thought of me the same way I thought of him. I just wanted things to go my way for once./p  
p class="MsoNormal"I stopped rolling around in the middle of the floor and stared at the ceiling. emGet this through your head, dammit. You love Mitch, even though he likes Jerome. That's okay; you don't need a boyfriend to be happy. Besides, you want the best for him and you're not the best. Jerome is moving in and that's okay too. Mitch'll be even happier. /emI slowly repeated these words in my head until I slightly believed them. I knew that they were lies – none of this was okay and it never will be – but I had to try at least. I'll try for Mitch./p  
p class="MsoNormal"Speaking of Mitch, my phone rang in my back pocket and the caller ID said he was calling. Wasn't he just in the other room? Why is he calling? I quickly pressed answer./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Hello?" I asked. /p  
p class="MsoNormal""Hello, is this Matthew?" as voice responded. I didn't recognize it. It was a man's voice, and he sounded very stern, like he was calling for a business matter./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Um, yeah. Who is this?" I said politely. In my head, I wasn't thinking any nice things. I wanted to know why this man had Mitch's phone and why he was calling me from it. Am I being called for a ransom or something? That would mean that he got kidnapped, and to be honest, he's so reckless that it's not completely unlikely that he got kidnapped./p  
p class="MsoNormal""I'm Doctor Carlile, and I'm calling to tell you about an accident your friend Mitchell was involved in." em((If you know where I got the last name Carlile from I will love you forever. I'll give you a shout-out next chapter if you comment correctly :D)) /em/p  
p class="MsoNormal""What happened?" I asked urgently. Mitch got in some kind of accident. There's a doctor who is calling me about it. Those two don't add up to be anything good./p  
p class="MsoNormal""There's been a car crash. Mitchell's car is completely wrecked and he has some serious injuries. Nothing fatal, but they potentially could've been if we hadn't come on time – he would've bled out. When we found him, we saw his phone nearby him. Fortunately for you, his phone doesn't have a password and we were able to contact someone. You were the first person in his favorites list," Dr. Carlile explained. emI'm the first person on his favorites- Shut up. Now is not the time. Mitch is injured. Besides, you're his roommate, shouldn't you be first anyways?/em /p  
p class="MsoNormal""Oh." I let out a small breath. This was not good at all./p  
p class="MsoNormal""He's fine now, he's still unconscious but he's stable. You're able to visit him right now – visiting hours end at 9, though." I nodded, then realized that he wasn't able to see me, so I muttered a quick thanks and good bye./p  
p class="MsoNormal"My arm dropped back to my side. Mitch was in a hospital. Mitch was in the hospital. Oh my god, Mitch was in the hospital! I shoved my phone into my pocket and ran into my car. I started driving as fast as I could to the hospital without getting in a car crash myself. Then I realized something. Jerome should know too, shouldn't he? He's coming back in a few days, and Mitch is his best friend. As much as I didn't want to talk to him, I forced myself to./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Hello?" Jerome answered./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Hey…" I muttered./p  
p class="MsoNormal""What's wrong, Mat?" he asked./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Um… Something happened to, uh, Mitch," I said slowly./p  
p class="MsoNormal""What?! What happened?! Is he okay?! Should I come over sooner?!" he rapid-fire spat questions./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Calm down, the doctors said he's fine, just unconscious. I'm driving over to see him now. I just… thought that you'd want to know," I answered quietly. Jerome's whole tone suddenly changed./p  
p class="MsoNormal""There's something else, Mat. What's wrong?" he said, softly. emI dunno, just the fact that you and Mitch like each other and I'm standing here just watching because I can't do anything but get rejected, /emI thought bitterly to myself. "What do you mean you keep getting rejected?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Oh, shit, did I say that out loud?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Maybe. But answer, Mat. What do you mean you keep getting rejected?"/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Well…" I started, trying to fabricate something. I have nothing to lose, why don't I just tell the truth? "I had a bad crush on Rob for a while and he's dating someone else, and then… I think I'm falling for Mitch. But h-he likes you," I nearly whispered. The last part was barely audible./p  
p class="MsoNormal""He does?" Jerome asked in a non-believing tone./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Yeah, I- erm, I got to go," I rushed out, ending the call./p  
p class="MsoNormal"I stared into the hospital's parking lot. Do you just ever wonder what everyone else is going through? We just get so invested in our own lives that we forget to acknowledge the fact that there are people just like you, who are human and have problems. The red car right next to me could belong to a woman whose husband is suffering from cancer. The grey mini-van on the opposite side of the lot could belong to a family whose youngest child was beaten up badly by a classmate. The black car that's pulling into the spot in front of me could be a guy whose fiancé was shot during a robbery when she was trying to buy groceries. And who knows, maybe the person in that convertible pulling in is thinking, "I bet the loser in that car is being melodramatic."/p  
p class="MsoNormal"He you figured out yet that I don't want to go in?/p  
p class="MsoNormal"In a daze, I dragged my feet towards the building. emMitch is in the hospital right now and I'm thinking about my sad love life? Add that to my list of why I get rejected alongside rolling on the floor in a burrito-blanket and being very selfish. I'm so funny, aren't I. Haha…/em/p  
p class="MsoNormal"em((I've never been in a hospital as a visitor so I'm basing this all off other fics and the few times we had to go because of my brother… Sorry))/em/p  
p class="MsoNormal""Hello, how may I help you?" a voice said in an overly cheery tone. I looked up and saw the receptionist give me a small smile. She looked bored, her smile contradictory to the annoyed look in her eyes./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Um… I came here to visit a friend," I muttered./p  
p class="MsoNormal""What's their name?" she asked./p  
p class="MsoNormal""Mitchell Hughes," I answered as I lightly sighed. She typed stuff on her computer and looked back up to me./p  
p class="MsoNormal""He's in room 116, that's down that hall and to the right. He may be unconscious right now, just a heads up," she told me. I nodded as I muttered a thanks./p  
p class="MsoNormal"It was very empty and plain in the hallway, not to mention dragging on forever. The bleach white walls and flooring made me want to cringe. It was anything but comforting. I can't imagine trying to be hopeful if I was a patient here./p  
p class="MsoNormal"116. The door was right in front of me. Mitch is behind that door and I don't really know what to expect. But before I got another chance to second guess myself, I impulsively opened the door./p  
p class="MsoNormal"em((Sorry that sucked and I'm sorry that took so long to update /ememspan style="font-family: Wingdings; mso-ascii-font-family: Calibri; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-hansi-font-family: Calibri; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-char-type: symbol; mso-symbol-font-family: Wingdings;"L/span I just wanted to get something out and hopefully it'll be better next chapter))/em/p 


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